Motor-vehicle.



' Np. 728,499:v

y PATENTBD 'MAY 19, 1909s. J. c. RB-UTBR- MOTOR VEHICLE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 3. 1902.

2y SHEETS-SHEET 1.

PTENTED-MAY 19,-1903'..

' 2 SHEETS-SEEN 2.

J.G.EEUTEE. MOTOR VEHICLE.

APPLICATION P ILBD JULY 3. 1902. Eo MODEL.

L E EARN? dzz deufky; Maggio.,

UNITED STATES PATENT Patented May 19, 1903.' i

OFFICE.

.Meroga-,Vinaloma.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 728,499, dated May 19, 1903. 'ApputationaitaJuiya1902. stanno. 114,286. (N0m0ae1.

To all whom t map/concern; l 'Be it known thatI, JOHN C. REUTER, ac itizen of the United States, residing at St. Louis, in the State of Missouri, have invented a newV and useful MotoreVehicle, of which the following is a specication. p l This invention relates to gearing-for motor-vehicles; and it has for its object tol pro-r vide for the transmissionvof power fromthe source of power to thedriving shaftor axle of the machine.

In carrying out my invention I avail myself of a worm-gear mounted directly upon the axle or drive-shaft and meshing with ak worm upon a shaft which is located in alinement with and driven directly from the main power-shaft, thus attaining a great Ysimplicity in the construction and Yarrangement vof the operating parts of the invention. Y

The detailed constructionvand arrangement of the parts comprising my inventionwill be hereinafter more fully described, and particularly pointed out Vin the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of as much of a motorvehicle as is necessary to illustrate my invention. Fig. 2 is a plan View. of thefsame. Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional detail view of the friction means for transmitting motion. Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional detail view taken on the line @t win Fig. 1.

Corresponding partsY in the several figures are indicated by likecharactersof reference.

l designates the vehicle-frame, and 2 the main drive-shaft or axle,u pon which is mounted the worm-gear 3. Brackets 4 4, suitably mounted and supportedupon thelframe,

carry the boxes 5 5, containingv antifrictionbearings 6 for the ends of -a shaft 7, having the spiral coil or worm 8, meshing with the Worm-gear 3. These antifriction-bearings supporting the Worm-shaft 7 are made the subject of another application for- Letters Patent of even date with this present appli-l cation and need not be described indetail herein.' The ends of thesh'aftj7, engaging the antifriction-bearings, have been shown as being'redu'ced in diameter. This is a nonessential and incidental feature of construction. The portion of the shaft 7 whichcarries the worm 8 is provided with anges or collars 9, and similar flanges'or collars 10 may be arranged in contact with the boxes 5. The

havingataperingrecess 15. T-hiscup-shaped device constitutes one member of a friction device which isl employed for transmitting motion from the source of power to the wormshaft, as will be hereinafter more fully described. 16 designates conventionally a motor which is supported upon the frame 1in such a position that its main shaft 17 shall be in longitudinal axial alinement with the Worm-shaft 7. ,The front end of the shaft 17 carries a clutch member 18, consisting of la collar having a series.. of pins or fingers 19,

projecting from the face vthereof and engaging corresponding recesses 2O in a clutch member 2l, consisting ofia collar suitably secured upon a shaft-section 2.2, which extends loosely through the cup-shaped clutch member 14 and into the bore 23 of. the "latter, `whichreceives the rear en dof the .worm-shaft 7. y-It will thus be seen that theA loose .shaft-section 1k 22 is supported at itsmends in the bore of the friction member `14 and bythe fingers 19 of the clutch member-18 andinsuch a manner as to be capable of a limited play or longitudi, nal movement. 1 Y

The shaft-section 22;; carries a sleeve 24, which is slidable upon the said shaft-section and also connected so'asto revolve therewith by means of a key orgfeather l25 or any other suitable means'. f shaft-section 22-may be'made angular for a portion of its length to fit a correspondinglyshaped bore extending throughV the sleeve.

:The latter is provided at its ends'withflanges 26 and 27, between which is mounted a taper-` ing or frustum-shaped friction-disk28, adapted to engage the interior tapering recess 15 of the cup or frictionmerber 14. The'sleeve 24 is extended at its rear end to engage an opening 29 in a lever 30, which is suitably fulcrumed to the Vframe of the vehicle.P The Thus, for instance, the` roo sleeve 24 is provided near its rear end with a collar 31, engaging against the rear side of the lever 30. The front side of the latter is provided with an annular groove 32, surrounding the sleeve and forming a ball-race, in which friction-balls 33 are placed in such a manner as to engage a corresponding groove 35 in the rear side of the collar 27 upon the sleeve.

The operation of my invention, broadly considered, is as follows: Motion is transmitted from the motor-shaft 17 by the clutch 18 to 20 to the loose shaft-section 22. By 0perating the lever 30, which may be connected, by means of rods or iiexible connections, (not shown in the drawings,) with a suitablydisposed operating-lever adapted to be operated either by hand or foot pressure, the sleeve carrying the friction-surface 28 may be forced into the cup-shaped friction member 14, thus transmitting motion from the loose shaft-section 22 to the worm-shaft 7, from which motion is in turn transmitted to the axle or main drive-shaft of the vehicle. It will thus be seen that the transmission of motion is absolutely direct and that there is practically no opportunity for loss of power.

As regards the details of the device the followingpoints are considered worthy of note:

The worm-shaft being mounted at its ends in antifriction-bearings the friction between said worm-shaft and its related parts will be so reduced that motion will be transmitted not only from the worm 8 to the worm-gear 3, but also reversely from the worin-gear to the worm-as, for instance, when the vehicle is coasting. This result may be aided by properly determining the respective pitch of the teeth of the worm-gear and the spiral of the worm, and it is largely assisted by the reduction in friction which isdue to the antifriction-bearings between the ends of the wormshaft and the sides of the boxes, whereby friction due to end thrust in either direction is entirely avoided. It is obvious that these end bearings may be arranged to engage the outer as well as the inner sides of the boxes 5 and that numerous modifications in the construction and arrangement of these parts of the device might be made without detracting from the utility of my invention ordeparting from the spirit thereof, and I reserve the right for such modifications.

By the friction device herein described it will be noted that communication may be instantaneously established or cut ed between the drive-shaft of the motor and the wormshaft by simply operating the lever 30. The means herein described for providing an antifriction bearing-surface between the said lever 30 and the collar 27 of the friction member composed of the sleeve 24 and its related parts will obviously provide for the transmission of power at this point with little or no friction. This is partly due to the fact that as soon as the friction-disk 28 has become wedged in the recess 15 of the cup 14 it is by no means necessary to exert a continued heavy pressure upon the lever.

By the herein-described arrangement of the loose shaft-section 22 between the worm-shaf t and the motor-shaft 17 I attain the very important object of preventing the racking and straining which otherwise would or might result. I reserve the right, however, to omit the coupling composed of the members 18 and 2O and to arrange the friction member consisting of the sleeve 24 and its related parts directly upon the motor-shaft in case I shall deem it desirable for any reason to do so.

The general construction and arrangement of the parts comprising my invention, as will be seen from the foregoing description, are extremely simple, and I am enabled by the employment of this device to produce a motorvehicle possessing superior advantages in point of simplicity, durability, and general efficiency.

I desire it to be distinctly understood that I do not limitA myself as regards the exact and specific construction of any of the parts of the device, but reserve the right to all modications which may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and without detracting from the utility thereof.

Having thus described my invention, I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States- 1. In a device of the class described, the combination of a worm-shaft, a friction member having a tapering recess mounted upon said shaft, a shaft connected loosely with the source of power and capable of limited play,

a friction member having a tapering surface mounted slidingly upon said shaft,within said tapering recess, and means for moving the slidable friction member into or out of contact with the friction member mounted upon the worm-shaft, substantially as set forth.

2. In a device of the class described, the combination of a worm-shaft, a friction member having a tapering recess mounted upon said shaft, a shaft connected loosely with the source of power and capable of limited play, a friction member having a tapering surface mounted slidingly upon said shaft, within said tapering recess, a lever engaging said slidable friction member and antifrictionballs mounted between the contacting surfaces of said lever and friction member, substantially as set forth.

3. In a device of the class described, the combination of a worm-shaft, a cup-shaped friction member having a longitudinal bore receiving and secured upon said shaft, a shaft loosely connected with the source of power, a friction member mounted slidingly within said cup-shaped friction member upon said shaft, said slidable friction member comprising a sleeve, collars upon said sleeve, and a friction-disk clamped between two of said collars, a lever engaging said sleeve, and antifriction-balls interposed between said lever IOC IIO

- shaft-section, means for connecting the latmeans for transmitting motion between the worm-shaft and the source of power, the same comprising a friction member upon the Wormshaft, a clutch member upon the power-shaft,

a suitably-supported loose shaft-section be.

tween the worm-shaft and the power-shaft and having engagementwith the clutch member upon the latter, and a friction member mounted slidably upon said loose shaft-section, substantially as set forth.

5. In a device of the class described, the worm-shaft and the power-shaft located in longitudinal axial alinement in combination with a suitably-supported intermediate loose shaft-section, means for connectingr the latter with the power-shaft and suitably-operated friction means for transmitting motion from said loose shaft-section to the wormshaft, substantially as set forth.

6. In a device ofthe class described, the combination of the worm-shaft and the powershaft located in longitudinal axial alinement, an intermediate suitably supported loose ter with the power-shaft in such a manner as to provide for a limited longitudinal movement of said loose shaft-section, a friction lmember mounted slidably upon the latter,

and a friction member mounted securely upon the worm-shaft and adapted to be engaged by the said slidable friction member, substantially as set forth.

7. In a device of the class described, the

combination of the Worm-shaft, a friction member mounted 4upon said worm-shaft and having a longitudinal bore extending beyond the latter, the powerlshaft located in longitudinal alinement with the worm-shaft and having a clutch member, an intermediate loose shaft-section having a clutch member slidably engaging the clutch member of the power-shaft and having its opposite end slidably supported in the bore of the friction member upon the wormshaft, afriction member mounted slidably upon the said loose shaft-section, and means for carrying the said slidable friction member into or out of engagement with the fixed friction member upon the wormshaft, substantially as se forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses. n

JOHN C. REUTER. Witnesses: I

J. H. JooHUM, Jr., FRANK S. APPLEMAN. 

